<![CDATA[The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes

false <![CDATA[The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - and Why]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255711842m/2706211.jpg 2706211 6 It lurks in the corner of our imagination, almost beyond our ability to see it: the possibility that a tear in the fabric of life could open up without warning, upending a house, a skyscraper, or a civilization. Today, nine out of ten Americans live in places at significant risk of earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, terrorism, or other disasters. Tomorrow, some of us will have to make split-second choices to save ourselves and our families. How will we react? What will it feel like? Will we be heroes or victims? Will our upbringing, our gender, our personality–anything we’ve ever learned, thought, or dreamed of–ultimately matter? Amanda Ripley, an award-winning journalist for Time magazine who has covered some of the most devastating disasters of our age, set out to discover what lies beyond fear and speculation. In this magnificent work of investigative journalism, Ripley retraces the human response to some of history’s epic disasters, from the explosion of the Mont Blanc munitions ship in 1917–one of the biggest explosions before the invention of the atomic bomb–to a plane crash in England in 1985 that mystified investigators for years, to the journeys of the 15,000 people who found their way out of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Then, to understand the science behind the stories, Ripley turns to leading brain scientists, trauma psychologists, and other disaster experts, formal and informal, from a Holocaust survivor who studies heroism to a master gunfighter who learned to overcome the effects of extreme fear. Finally, Ripley steps into the dark corners of her own imagination, having her brain examined by military researchers and experiencing through realistic simulations what it might be like to survive a plane crash into the ocean or to escape a raging fire. Ripley comes back with precious wisdom about the surprising humanity of crowds, the elegance of the brain’s fear circuits, and the stunning inadequacy of many of our evolutionary responses. Most unexpectedly, she discovers the brain’s ability to do much, much better, with just a little help. The Unthinkable escorts us into the bleakest regions of our nightmares, flicks on a flashlight, and takes a steady look around. Then it leads us home, smarter and stronger than we were before. 2731695 10 6 2008 The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - and Why total:399|5:123|4:181|3:82|2:10|1:3| 399 1608 810 198 3 4 false false Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Dec 10 03:52:53 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 10 03:52:53 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Feb 13 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 10:26:46 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 10:26:46 -0800 2009 5 2 false false Thu Jun 19 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 15 18:52:46 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 19 15:24:59 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Nov 15 11:46:55 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 15 11:47:11 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sat Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 15 13:53:13 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 15 13:53:46 -0700 2009
Ripley deftly weaves stories of past disasters with anthropological, psychological, and architectural studies about group and ind...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 11 15:57:42 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 10:15:39 -0800 2009
I wanted to read this not to be...more...]]> 5 1 true false Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 01 00:48:11 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 01 00:52:12 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Mar 30 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 27 09:52:42 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 31 15:18:35 -0700 2009 panic -- that panic, while it does exist, is not the normal reaction. When faced with overwhelming peril, most of us will become para...more...]]> 0 1 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 06 20:57:30 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 06 20:58:13 -0800 2009
Ripley, a well-known New York Times writer, decides to take on the question: who survives traumas, and do those survive have tale...more...]]> 5 1 false false Thu Apr 09 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Apr 02 16:09:15 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 11 11:45:50 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Apr 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 26 20:06:31 -0700 2009 Fri Apr 10 09:26:19 -0700 2009
...more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jul 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 06 06:21:32 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 06 06:21:32 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Aug 20 11:26:03 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 20 11:36:40 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Feb 13 21:47:49 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 21:48:39 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Nov 29 05:57:34 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 29 06:04:31 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Tue Jul 01 16:33:30 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 29 21:43:52 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 01 16:33:30 -0700 2008 5 0 false false Sun May 17 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun May 17 11:08:47 -0700 2009 Sun May 17 11:09:20 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Jun 22 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 23 18:54:47 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 23 19:01:52 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Jan 30 18:35:59 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 10 14:41:48 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 30 18:35:59 -0800 2009
How people react to disaster is often different than you think. Most of the time we all go into shock and that shock can benefit or hinder our survivability. The tips in this book will help you harness or overcome (where needed) your instinctive reactions to better...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Jun 11 07:26:31 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 11 07:31:29 -0700 2009 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=2706211